1. Field of Invention
The present invention pertains to the field of golf putters. More particularly, this invention is a golf ball putter head having golf ball alignment indicia for assisting a golfer in aligning the golf ball with respect to the putter head prior to putting.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the field of golf, great emphasis is placed on putting. Many putting aides have been provided for assisting a golfer in aligning a putter with the ball relative to the hole. While many factors must be considered when aligning the putter, one aspect that is often overlooked is the visual misconception of the size of the cup.
It is well known, for example, to consider the lie of the ball relative to the cup. A golfer will investigate whether there is an uphill or downhill lie. The golfer will further investigate whether the green is sloping in a direction where the ball will travel across a slope, thereby requiring the golfer to aim away from the cup such that the ball will travel in an arcuate path to come back to the hole. The golfer will also investigate the direction of the turf, the moisture of the turf, and whether there are in other obstacles between the ball and the cup.
It is known to provide indicia of various configurations to assist the golfer in aligning the putter head with the golf ball and to aim the face of the club, and thereby the travel path of the putter, relative to the results of the various aspects of investigation mentioned above.
Several putters have been provided in the prior art. Typical of the art are those devices disclosed in the following U.S. patents and published applications:
U.S. Pat. No.Inventor(s)Issue DateD257,869A. S. O. MacDougallJan. 13, 1981D364,666E. NagyNov. 28, 1995D388,853R. W. MinamiJan. 6, 1998D402,724R. W. MinamiDec. 15, 1998D424,145R. W. MinamiMay 2, 20003,408,074A. J. AntoniousOct. 29, 19683,632,112C. D. JacobsJan. 4, 19723,708,172J. F. RangoJan. 2, 19733,841,639F. D. WernerOct. 15, 19744,580,784E. F. BrillApr. 8, 19864,934,702S. SerizawaJun. 19, 19905,417,426S. L. BayerMay 23, 19956,379,258S. ToApr. 30, 20026,435,975N. M. MiddletonAug. 20, 20026,702,688B. R. HaleMar. 9, 20046,878,072D. V. HenryApr. 12, 2005Publication No.Inventor(s)Publication Date2005/0096153N. L. StoakesMay 5, 20052005/0059506J. YamamotoMar. 17, 20052005/0176520D. V. HenryAug. 11, 2005
Of these patents, the '869 design patent issued to MacDougall illustrates a golf club head defining planar parallel top and bottom surfaces. A cylindrical opening is vertically oriented and centrally disposed in the club head. The club head defines a planar face and a semicircular trailing edge. A sighting line is illustrated in the center of the club head, extending from the face to the heel.
Similarly, the '666 design patent issued to Nagy defines a triangular club head having a centrally disposed opening. However, Nagy illustrates a curved bottom surface. Further, the centrally disposed opening defines a substantially hemispherical configuration. A sight line is illustrated in the center of the club head, extending from the face to the opening.
Minami ('853 design, '724 design and '145 design) discloses several golf putter heads configured to retrieve a golf ball. Each club head defines a through opening defining a substantially cylindrical side wall through which the golf ball is received. Sight lines are also disclosed in various configurations.
Antonious, in the '074 patent, discloses a putter provided with a weighted spherical section of the same shape and size as a golf ball. The spherical section is rigid with the top of the putter head and positioned on a line where the putter contacts the ball. The spherical section is cut at a rearward angle to a vertical plane so that when viewed from above the cut sector presents alignment indicia.
In his '639 patent, Werner discloses a golf ball retrieving club. The golf putter of the '639 patent includes a head of a size and shape to be received within a golf cup and defines a receptacle in the bottom of the putter head configured to receive and hold a golf ball. Werner incorporates a flexible tubular member for retaining the golf ball in the golf ball receptacle. A “T” shaped sighting indicia is provided. A first sighting line is parallel to and spaced apart from the face of the club head. A second sighting line it disposed orthogonally to the first sighting line, and extends from approximately the center of the first sighting line to approximately the heel of the club head. Werner discloses that the sighting lines are recesses and may be painted with a contrasting color.
In his '112 patent, Jacobs discloses a golf ball retrieving club defining a gall ball holding cavity extending completely through the putter head and further opening on the rear wall of the club head. The wall of the cavity is tapered inward from the bottom to the top to compress a golf ball when received therein. In order to aid in aligning the club head with the ball and with the cup into which the ball is to be stroked, parallel sight lines in the form of grooves are provided on the top surface, normal to the striking face.
Rango, in his '172 patent, discloses a golf putter having a generally vertically extending opening having a circular cross section extending entirely through the head. The hole is dimensioned to match or be slightly greater than the diameter of a golf ball and is provided for dividing the head into substantially equal masses in order to counterbalance tendencies of the head to twist when the ball is struck at a location other than the center of the head. The hole is further provided to serve as a gauge for measuring the diameter of a ball, and to detect the roundness of a ball. A sighting mark in the top wall includes a forward sight groove and a rearward sight groove. The sight mark is perpendicular to the striking face.
Brill ('784) discloses a golf club capable of retreiving a golf ball by frictionally gripping the ball, or by scooping the ball from a surface. The head of the golf club includes a front section having a front face adapted to strike a golf ball, and a pair of side sections extending rearwardly from the front section. The top surface of the front section is provided with a pair of guide or aiming lines. When viewing from the top, the aiming lines assist in aiming and centering the ball.
Serizawa, in his '702 patent, discloses a putter for enabling picking up a ball within a hole in a standing posture. The putter head defines a circular hollow portion adapted to receive a golf ball by pushing the club downward on the ball. The elasticity of the surface of the ball and the friction between the ball and an inner peripheral edge of the circular hollow portion of the head abutting the elastic surface of the ball serve to retain the ball. In order to allow for effective putting of a ball more easily and accurately, a thin plated bridge is integrally formed in the head and a centered line is provided for sighting.
In the '426 patent, Bayer discloses a golf putter having ball retrieval and ball marking features. The '426 putter defines a through opening having a side wall tapering in from the bottom to a distance above the bottom, then tapering out from to the top. A reduced diameter is defined at the point the taper changes direction. A ball may be passed through the reduced diameter and received in the upper portion of the opening. The opening on the top surface of the putter head is thus larger than the diameter of a golf ball.
To, in the '258 patent, discloses a golf club with alignment indicia and method of use of the same. The golf club includes a club head which has a top and a striking face. The alignment indicia are in the form of a first straight line and a second straight line positioned in spaced apart relation on the top of the club head. The first straight line and the second straight line diverge as they approach the striking face. The first straight line is closer to the shaft than the second straight line. By selecting the first straight line or the second straight line for alignment, the striking face of the golf club is moved to an open or closed position to aid in intentional placement of the golf ball from the left or right toward a selected target.
Middleton ('975) discloses a golf club similar to that disclosed by Rango ('172). The club head defines a recess for receiving a golf ball used to practice alignment between the club head and a ball in play. The top surface further defines a rectangular recess from the face to the heel, with parallel elongated sides on either side of the golf ball recess.
In the '688 patent, Hale discloses a golf putter training system for developing a controlled putter head velocity and acceleration during a putting swing. The golf putter training system includes a body having a rear portion and a front portion, and a main aperture within the body for receiving a conventional golf ball in a rotatable manner. A direction indicium is positioned within an upper surface of the body for indicating the desired direction of travel of the putter head. The direction indicium includes an arrow shaped structure or line structure or other indicia capable of indicating a desired direction. The direction indicia is positioned within the front portion of the body.
The '153 application filed by Stoakes discloses a golf putter including a club head having a body and a forward ball striking surface. A weight-receiving pocket is formed in an upper surface of the body of the club head and a weight mounting device such as a screw is mounted within the weight-receiving pocket in the body of the club head. At least one club head weight is removably mounted within the weight-receiving pocket of the body of the club head by engagement with the weight mounting device, the club head weight including club head alignment indicia on the top face of club head weight operative to provide visual alignment cues for ball striking by the forward ball striking surface.
The '506 application filed by Yamamoto discloses a golf club putter head having a plurality of markings on the upper surface thereof. The markings include a half circle aligned with a spaced apart full circle, a first straight line parallel to the ball striking face and a second straight line along a diameter of the fill circle and extending through the half circle to intersect the first straight line at a point above the sweet spot of the ball striking face.
Finally, the '072 patent and the '520 application, both disclosed by the inventor of the present invention, disclose golf putters including a ball retriever and retainer configured to retrieve and hold a golf ball. The putter defines a substantially symmetrical configuration from heel to toe. Ball alignment indicia are disposed on the top surface of the golf putter head, the ball alignment indicia defining at least a C-shaped configuration, whereby a ball is visually aligned between said first and second ends to center the ball on said striking face. As disclosed in the '520 application, the ball alignment indicia may further include at least one line segment disposed coincidentally to the initial direction of travel of the golf ball.